Cleveland Foundation announces February centennial gift to the community: a free weekend on North Coast Harbor

Foundation will provide free admission to Great Lakes Science Center on Feb. 22 and to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame & Museum on Feb. 23

Embargoed until 9 a.m. 2.3.14

CLEVELAND – The Cleveland Foundation today announced the second in a series of monthly “Cleveland Foundation Day” centennial gifts to the community – and it’s not just one, but two days. The foundation is creating a “North Coast Harbor Weekend” by inviting the community to visit Great Lakes Science Center on Saturday, Feb. 22 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame & Museum on Sunday, Feb. 23, for free. This is the first time the Rock Hall will host a free weekend day and it is also the first time Great Lakes Science Center has opened its weekend doors for both free admission and OMNIMAX films in its 18-year history.

“We are providing two ‘Cleveland Foundation Days’ in February because we want to showcase North Coast Harbor and make these Cleveland landmarks accessible to the entire community,” said Robert E. Eckardt, executive vice president of the Cleveland Foundation. “The Cleveland Foundation is proud of the role our organization and our donors have played in developing North Coast Harbor into the destination it is today. We hope Greater Clevelanders spend the weekend on the North Coast celebrating what their generosity has created for the world to enjoy.”

The Cleveland Foundation helped launch the development of North Coast Harbor in the 1980s, playing a role in bringing the Rock Hall to Cleveland and supporting the creation of the Science Center in the 1990s. Throughout the past three decades, the foundation and its donors have provided nearly $10 million of grant support to the Rock Hall and Science Center.

“The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum would not be the globally-recognized institution it is today without the support of the Cleveland Foundation,” said Greg Harris, president and CEO of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. “More than 20 years ago, the foundation invested in North Coast Harbor, enticing visitors from across Northeast Ohio and around the world to experience our unique waterfront museums. The foundation’s generous support continues to sustain the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame today. In turn, we’ve contributed more than $2 billion to the Greater Cleveland economy. Now we are thrilled to open our doors on this special day to share our world-class exhibits with the community.”

The Science Center will be open for free admission from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Feb. 22. Free OMNIMAX films will be shown all day; seating will be available for the first 1,800 people. The Rock Hall will have free admission from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Feb. 23. Details on special family programming for the free weekend will be released on Feb. 17.

“We are honored to be selected by the Cleveland Foundation for this opportunity to further enhance North Coast Harbor as an important Cleveland destination,” said Dr. Kirsten Ellenbogen, president and CEO, Great Lakes Science Center. “At the Science Center, we bring people together to have fun in ways that fuel curiosity and critical thinking. We invite everyone in the community to our free day on Saturday, February 22, to join us in making science, technology, engineering, and math come alive.”

Visitors are encouraged to take the Greater Cleveland RTA, which has a stop at the Science Center and Rock Hall on its Waterfront line. Details on various parking options are available at www.greatscience.com and www.rockhall.com.

A large number of Greater Clevelanders took advantage of the foundation’s first “Cleveland Foundation Day” gift to the community, a free day of riding on the Greater Cleveland RTA on Jan. 16. There was a 25-percent increase of riders on RTA buses and trains, a 20-percent rise in paratransit usage, and a 41-percent increase in HealthLine riders.